One day, the inhabitants of the Nart Country, all who were still able to wear dudes on their feet, gathered for the Great Khasa. Thagolej, the god of fertility, addressed the Narts from the top of Harama Mountain:
- Sledges! Until now, I have helped you, to the best of my ability, to reap a rich harvest of millet. And now I have grown old, the measure of my strength has decreased. That is why I decided to give you seeds of good millet. Sow them every year, and from now on you will not have a single lean year.
- Live long, Thagoledge! “You are selfless and generous, you are the source of our prosperity,” the Narts proclaimed their toast to the patron of fertility. And he said to them:
“If you boil one grain of my millet, it will yield a full cauldron of paste.”
Thagoledge threw one millet grain into each Nart cauldron. The Narts lit a fire, hung up their huge cauldrons and began to cook the pasta. They cooked it and were surprised: from each small grain a whole cauldron of paste came out. The sledges began to feast and, as was their custom, they drained the first drinking cup in honor of Thagolej. In response they heard his words:
- Keep the seeds of this millet securely. Sow them every year, and leave the first threshing of the new crop for next year. Live like that.
The Narts were afraid to store Thagolej seeds in the barn of some family. They built a copper barn, placed the blessed millet seeds there and guarded them day and night.
When Thagolej was teaching the Narts, Emynezh, the sworn enemy of human joy, overheard his words. He was a monster with the body of a dragon and the face of a giant. Spread out on the ridge of the highest mountain, he often spied on what was going on with the Narts, eavesdropped on what conversations they had among themselves. Having learned that the Narts had stored the Thagolej seeds in a copper barn, he was delighted. Emynezh hunted for these seeds for many hundreds of years, but was afraid to enter into a fair fight with the patron of fertility.
“Now it will turn out my way,” thought Emynezh, grinning maliciously, “the seeds of Thagolej, which I have dreamed of all my life, will be in my hands!”
For three weeks Emynezh did not move from his place, for three weeks he did not appear anywhere in order to lull the vigilance of the sledges, so that Tkhagoledzh would not suspect evil. Three weeks after Khasa Nartov, Emynezh snuck into the Nart village on a dark night, crawled to the barn and hit it with his dragon tail. The blow was so strong that thunder roared and lightning flashed, lighting up the night sky. Nart, the guardian of the barn, was killed, and the barn itself was split in two. Emynezh grabbed the millet seeds and ran away.
In the morning the sledges woke up, and one said to the other:
- Well, there was a strong lightning strike yesterday! And the thunder was so loud that the houses shook!
Then the sledges looked - and their copper barn was split in two. They rushed to him - the seeds disappeared. In great anxiety they went to the patron of fertility and called out to him:
- Thagoledge, our soul! Yesterday we put your seeds in the copper barn. Today we woke up and saw: the barn was split open and the seeds had disappeared.
“If they disappeared, find them,” said Tha Golej.
“If they knew who took it, they would have found it.”
- How do I know who took them?
- If you don’t tell, then who will tell us?
- Ask Satan.
What were the Narts to do? They listened to Thagolej's advice and went to Satan. The sledges complained to her:
- Satanay, wisest of women! We are in grief: the hope of all the Narts has been dispelled, our seeds have been stolen, and we don’t even know the name of the villain!
“Didn’t Thagoledge tell you the name of the evil deed?” - Satanay asked sternly.
“No, I didn’t,” answered the Narts.
“I didn’t name it because I was angry,” said Sataney. “Emynezh has been coveting his seeds for a long time, and more than once the monster tried to take them away by force, but could not defeat Thagolej.” And now Tha Golej has grown old, weakened and given you his seeds so that Emynezh would not take them away from him. But you didn’t save them. Your business is bad, you have disgraced the honor of the Narts.
- What should we do? Should we really live with dishonored honor? - asked the sledges.
“And that’s just as you want,” answered Sataney.
The Narts got angry and shouted:
- While we are alive, Emynezh will not get our seeds!
“Now I hear the man’s words!” said Sataney, and her voice softened a little. - I'll help you. I'll tell you how to get to Emynezh. Listen. First you must cross seven mountain ranges. Then you will reach the place where the sun rises in the sky...
- Wow, how far! - Nart Khimish interrupted.
“This is one leap for a Nart rider,” Sataney objected and continued: “You will go further, cross seven hundred rivers and reach the place where the sun stands in the middle of the sky...”
- Wow, how far! - Nasren Longbeard was alarmed.
“That’s two races for a Nart horseman,” said Sataney. - You will go further, swim across three small seas and seven great seas, reach the place where the sun descends in the sky...
- Wow, how far! - Badyn the sledge could not stand it.
“That’s three races for a Nart rider,” said Sataney. - You will go further, you will reach the place where the sun completely sets beyond the edge of the sky. This is where the Emynezha fortress stands.
“Wow, how far,” Nart Dzhilakhstan shook his head. “We won’t get to this place in our entire lives.”
“You will get there if you set off on the journey,” said Sataney and added: “Why did you take the seeds from Thagolej if you want to give them to Emynezh?”
Satan shamed the Narts, they gathered at the Great Khasa and decided to take the seeds from Emynezh. At that time, Arykshu was considered the bravest warrior among the Narts. He was sent on a long journey. Arykshu did not return and went missing. Ten horsemen equipped the sledges, but the horsemen did not return. They equipped one hundred horsemen and sent them to Emynezh. At this time, Sosruko was returning from distant travels: he was exploring the human world.
So Sosruko is traveling through the Nart Country, sees her in deep sadness and learns that Emynezh has stolen the seeds given to the Narts by the god of fertility. Sosruko dismounted at his house, greeted his mother with Satan and asked her:
- Where does Emynezh live, because of whom the Nart Country is in deep sadness?
- Why do you need to know where he lives?
- I want to go to him. I will return the Thagolej seeds to the Narts.
Satan rejoiced and answered her son:
“I hear the man’s words.” I'll help you. I'll tell you how to get to Emynezh. You will cross seven mountain ranges and reach the place where the sun rises in the sky. If you don't get there...
“This, mother, is one leap for me,” said Sosruko.
- If you go further, you will cross seven hundred rivers, and there is exactly the place where the sun stands in the middle of the sky. If you don't get there...
“That’s two leaps for me, mother.”
- Fine. If you go further, you will cross three small seas and seven great seas. You will reach the place where the sun touches the edge of the sky. If you haven't achieved it...
- That's three leaps, mother.
“Then, my son,” exclaimed Sataney, beaming with happiness, “you will see the fortress of Emynezh!” She's standing
at the very place where the sun sets beyond the edge of the sky.
- Why does Emynezh live where the sun goes beyond the edge of the sky?
- Because he is greedy. This monster destroys everything that brings people joy. Emynezh will shine in the sun. So he settled where the sun comes close to the earth - he thinks that in the dark, secretly from people, he will be able to devour the sun.
Encouraged by Satan, Sosruko mounted a horse and, dressed in battle armor, galloped off to collect the seeds of the blessed millet. He rode for a long time, crossed seven mountain ranges, and reached the place where the sun rises in the sky. Here he stopped to tighten his girths and moved on. He rode for a long time, passed seven hundred rivers, and reached the place where the sun rises to the middle of the sky. Here he only slowed his horse down a little, tightened his girths as he galloped, and rode on without stopping. The rider swam across three small seas and seven large seas and reached the place where the sun touches the edge of the sky. Here he stopped, tightened the girths, pulled himself up and said to the horse:
- We are entering the possessions of Emynezh. I ask you, old comrade, do everything that the horse can do. Jump forward, raising your head to the sky!
“I swear by Amysh, the patron saint of animals,” the horse neighed, “that I will not regret my life, but will do everything that the horse can do!”
Where the monster's domain began, a high mountain peak rose. There was a sentinel on this peak. The sentinel was a Nart girl: a monster stole her from the Nart Country. Emynezh was reclining below, at the foot of the mountain, and the Nart girl reported to him about everything she saw from the top of the mountain. Noticing a lone horseman, the Nart girl shouted to Emynezh:
— One horseman is galloping.
- How does he jump? - asked Emynezh.
— Off-road. In places where no one has ever ridden before.
- Which side is he riding on?
“He doesn’t look for the shady side.” He gallops, embraced by the blazing sun.
- What does he eat on the way? Aren't they sweet apples and juicy pears?
— He eats the most sour apples and the most bitter pears.
— What does he drink on the way? Isn't it pure spring water?
- He travels around clear springs, he drinks only muddy swamp water.
“I don’t like this rider.” He doesn't look like the Narts I killed. But let him go. And when he gets to my Sword-Gate, his head will fly off, and I will put that head on a stake - next to the other Nart heads!
Emynezh laughed so viciously that the girl’s heart sank with sadness and torment. Then Emynezh shouted:
“I’ll go: I need to plow the field to sow the seeds of Thagolej.” And you, as soon as my Sword-Gate beheads the horseman, take his head and put it on a stake, next to the heads of those sledges who tried to take away the millet seeds from me.
The monster disappeared into the gorge, dragging its dragon tail, and the Nart girl continued to watch the galloping horseman. She saw from his face that he was indifferent to both danger and the hardships of the road, and she liked it. She thought: “This is the first time I’ve seen such a brave horseman. But, alas, he too will die, beheaded by the Sword-Gate, and I am unable to help him!”
Meanwhile, Sosruko drove up to Emynezh’s lair. It was surrounded by seven fortress walls, and only through one single gate could one enter the fortress. They were not gates, but huge swords. Not like a man, a bird could not fly into the fortress: the swords closed and cut it in two.
The fortress itself stood on a hill, in the very place where the sun, having gone beyond the edge of the sky, touches the ground.
As soon as Sosruko approached the Sword Gate, a ringing sound was heard: powerful blades were ringing, hitting each other.
“Wow,” the Nart was surprised, “I’ve never seen such a gate!”
He pulled out a hair from the horse's tail and threw this hair into the gate. The blades closed and cut the hair in two. Sosruko exclaimed:
- Tlepsh, glorious blacksmith! You forged me a sword from the braid of the god of fertility. Now make sure that my sword cuts through the gates of Emynezh, the enemy of human joy!
Having said this, Sosruko rode back, rushed forward like a whirlwind and swung his sword at full gallop, cutting through the Sword Gate. The powerful blades fell with a long ringing sound. Sosruko rode into the fortress, bending under the huge arms that hung powerlessly over the rider.
The girl, seeing that the Nart had defeated the Sword-Gate, was delighted. She ran across Emynezh’s yard to meet Sosruko and told him:
- Good Nart horseman! Your arrival is my happiness. But woe to you: although you have overcome the Sword-Gate, you will not be saved from Emynezh himself. This is my grief too, but turn back, I beg you!
“Know this, beauty: I don’t go on a long journey and return without reaching my goal!” - said Sosruko. “Emynezh stole millet seeds from the Narts, given to us by the God of fertility. Tell me, beauty, have you seen these seeds?
“I saw it,” the girl answered. - They are in a leather bag, and the monster has the bag: Emynezh took the bag with him and went to plow. And he plows on the top of a high mountain.
Sosruko looked at the top of the gloomy, rocky mountain and realized that it was not easy to climb it. He asked:
“Couldn’t Emynezh have found a better place for arable land?”
“You obviously don’t know Emynezh well.” He chose this inaccessible peak for arable land so that people would not get the millet, because not a single sled would be able to climb it.
So the Nart girl said, she said with great sadness, and Sosruko, wishing her happiness, rushed to Mount Emynezha. The mountain was steep and high. Its rocks, overgrown with moss and thistles, fell over the abyss. There were no paths. At the sight of these inaccessible rocks, Sosruko flew into a rage, hit his horse with a whip, and the horse, as if sensing wings, flew to the top of the mountain.
A clearing opened to Sosruko’s eyes. Emynezh plowed, bending his dragon body, and on the branch of a gigantic tree hung a leather bag with millet seeds.
“My business turned out well!” - Sosruko thought, rushed to the tree, tore off the leather bag at full speed and galloped away.
Emynezh straightened up, looked around, looked at the retreating horseman and laughed:
- Stupid little guy, you won’t get anywhere from me!
Emynezh, slowly, went home, slowly, ate, rested a little, slowly, saddled his three-legged black horse, sat on it and chased after Sosruko. The Nart could not gallop away from the monster: Emynezh overtook Sosruko at the seashore, ran into him with the chest of a three-legged black horse, and the Nart rider fell to the ground along with the Nart horse.
“All the Narts who tried to take away the millet seeds from me died, and they were no match for you, little one—they were brave knights!”
Having shouted like that, Emynezh took a bag of millet seeds and went home. And Sosruko jumped up, helped the horse up, sat on it and rode in the footsteps of Emynezh, rode so that Emynezh did not see or hear him.
Again Emynezh climbed to the top of the inaccessible mountain, again hung a bag of millet on the branch of a gigantic tree, and began to plow. And Sosruko galloped up to the Nart girl. She told him:
“As long as Emynezh is alive, you will not be able to return the millet seeds to the Narts.” We must kill Emynezh.
- Would he be alive if I could kill him! - Sosruko exclaimed, and there was torment and hope in his voice.
“I will help you,” said the Nart girl. “I will find out where his soul is.” And let your courage do the rest. But remember: if Emynezh manages to plow the entire field, then the sleds will forever lose their fertile seeds. To prevent this dirty deed from being fulfilled, don’t let Yemynezh plow, don’t let him sow, until I find out where his soul is. Now hide: soon evening, Emynezh will return home...
- It’s a disaster, it’s a disaster! - Yemy Tezh shouted, entering his fortress. “Some desperate little guy tried to steal my bag of millet.” I lost a whole day chasing this sled with a sunk, I barely had time to plow anything!
Emynezh stretched out on his bed, put a leather bag with millet under his head - he now decided not to part with the Thagolej seeds - and said:
- It will be more reliable that way! All the efforts of the Narts are in vain: as long as my soul is in its place, people will not be able to return the millet seeds.
-Where is your soul? - asked the Nart girl.
- Why do you need to know where my soul is?
- Because I love you and your soul.
Yemynezh did not love anyone or anything, he hated human joy, he did not believe the Nart girl. But still her words were pleasant to him, and in order to test her, he said:
- My soul is in this door frame...
In the morning, Emynezh went to plow, taking with him a leather bag with seeds. Sosruko followed him out. As soon as Emynezh hung the leather bag on the branch of a gigantic tree and began to plow, Sosruko grabbed the bag at full gallop and galloped away.
“What a stubborn little fellow!” Yemynezh shouted. Again, without haste, he ate, again he rested after a hearty meal, again, without haste, he mounted a three-legged black horse and chased the Nart horseman. Emynezh overtook him at the seashore and extended his hand to catch him, but the rider dived into the sea and disappeared into the abyss. A light leather bag floated to the top and pulled Sosruko along with him. He let go of the bag and swam further, and Emynezh grabbed the bag and turned the three-legged horse back.
Emynezh returned home only in the evening. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he began to scold:
- Damn shorty! Again, because of him, the day was wasted, again I was chasing the Nart sucker, I didn’t plow today.
Then Emynezh looked at the door and was surprised. The frame was polished to a shine, its carvings were covered with gold.
- Wow! - Yemynezh exclaimed. - Who brought my door to life?
The Nart girl bowed to the monster and said:
- Since your living soul is in the frame, let the frame become alive.
Emynezh was pleased with this answer.
“I didn’t know you loved me so much,” he said. “I deceived you: my soul is not in this frame, it is in that tree that stands at the threshold of my house.”
The girl pretended to be offended, and this made Emynezh even more happy.
“Maybe she really loves me,” he thought.
In the morning, Emynezh went to plowing again. Again Sosruko did not let him plow, forcing him to chase him all day. Emynezh returned home again only in the evening, loudly scolding the Nart horseman, and suddenly looked at the tree that stood at the threshold of the house. The old tree looked younger, the bark sparkled, every leaf was covered with gold.
- Wow! Is this how you decorated the old tree? - Emynezh turned to the Nart girl.
“How can I not decorate this tree if your soul blooms in it,” answered the girl, bowing low to the monster.
“Now I see that you love me, you’re not deceiving me.” And I deceived you again.
The girl pretended to be offended. This made Emynezh happy. He told her:
- Well, that's enough, don't frown, I believe you: you love me. And how can you not love me? I will tell you the real truth: my soul is in a three-legged black horse. I drove this horse from the intermarium. He was born from a mare named Tkhozh, and this mare is owned by an old woman: she has a whole herd of unprecedented horses. There are no such horses anywhere on earth, and there is no person on earth who could reach the wonderful herd. And while there is no horse on earth that could defeat my three-legged one, I am invincible!
In the morning, when Emynezh, taking a leather bag with him, went to plow, the Nart girl said to Sosruko:
“You will not defeat Emynezh until you find a horse that is stronger and faster than a three-legged black horse.” In him, in the three-legged one, is the soul of Emynezh.
“How can I get such a horse?” asked Sosruko.
- Go to the intermarium, find an old woman who owns a herd of mighty horses. There is a mare in this herd named Tkhozh. If you get a horse born of the mare Thozh, you will defeat Ema Tezh.
- Fine. I will find the old woman and get a horse. Be happy, I'm leaving.
- Wait! Have you thought about the fact that a person is unable to reach the old woman’s herd?
- This anxiety is not my anxiety.
- Wait! Have you thought that by the time you return, Emynezh will finish plowing and sow all the millet seeds?
- And this is not my concern.
Having said this, Sosruko caused a frost so strong that the mountains cracked: the wise Satan taught him this witchcraft.
The Nart horseman galloped towards the intermarium. In the evening Emynezh returned home. He said angrily:
- Every day there will be an attack. Yesterday there was a short Nart, and today there is frost. Again I didn’t plow, again I lost the whole day. A strange thing! I’ve lived here for a long time, but I’ve never seen such frost before. He chained the whole world, damn it! Hey, girl, light the fire, or I’ll freeze!
And Sosruko rode and rode. He was on the road for a long time, and then one day he saw a dying wolf at the edge of the forest. And this wolf had been in the Nart forests, he recognized Sosruko.
“Hey, Sosruko,” said the wolf, “I’m dying, help me.” The time will come and I will help you.
Sosruko gave the wolf pasta and lamb to taste. The wise Satan prepared these travel supplies for her son, and as soon as the wolf touched them with his long teeth, he came to life, ran and disappeared into the forest; And Sosruko moved on.
Sosruko rode a long time or a little, and one day he saw an eagle in the sky, tormenting a falcon. Sosruko took out his bow and shot an arrow, and it pinned the eagle to the vault of heaven. And the falcon flew to Sosruko, landed on his shoulder and said:
- I will remember your help! I will repay you in kind on your difficult day!
The falcon flew away, and Sosruko drove on. Whether he drove a lot or a little, he saw a fish on the seashore: it was thrown onto land by a storm. Sosruko dismounted, picked up the fish and threw it back into the sea. But the fish swam to the shore and said:
- I will remember your help! On your difficult day, I will repay you with kindness.
The fish disappeared into the depths of the sea, and Sosruko drove on. Whether he traveled a lot or a little, he entered the borders of the land where the old woman lived - the owner of the herd. Suddenly a hundred eagles flew in, a hundred dogs came running and attacked Sosruko. The Nart horseman turned back from them and galloped into the dense forest where tigers lived. Having killed several tigers, he skinned them and tied himself and his horse with their meat. After that, he set off towards the eagles and guard dogs of the old woman. The eagles and dogs pounced on the rider and began tearing pieces of tiger meat from him and the horse. So Sosruko entered the domain of the old herdswoman.
It was afternoon, and the old woman was sleeping soundly on the mound. Sosruko dismounted, silently approached the old woman and fell to her chest like a son. And then he hid behind the mound.
The old woman woke up and shouted:
“Let my eyes, which have not seen you, go blind!”
Then Sosruko stood up from behind the mound, approached her and said:
- Mother, let your eyes shine when they see me, your son!
The old woman liked such words. She asked:
- What grief brought you to me?
“I came to you with a great prayer: give me a horse.”
“I will give a horse only to someone who can herd my herd for three nights in a row.” Can you?
- I'll try.
They agreed on that. As soon as evening had fallen, Sosruko drove the old woman’s herd out to pasture. Until midnight the horses were calm, but at midnight they, as if by agreement, rushed about and rushed off into the dense forest, and there they scattered in all directions, in different directions. An alarmed herder gallops through the forest, but cannot find his horses. Sosruko dismounted, leaned against a tree, stood there, not knowing what to do next. Then a wolf runs up to him.
“What are you sad about, Sosruko?” asks the wolf.
- Well, my herd has scattered through the forest, I just can’t get the horses to go.
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you,” says the wolf.
Sosruko closed his eyes for a moment, opened them, and the wolf had already gathered the entire herd. In the morning, Sosruko drove the herd to the mound, to the old woman. The old woman counted, counted all the horses and said:
- The first night is your victory.
In the evening, the herder again drove the horses to pasture. As soon as midnight had come, all the horses, as if by agreement, neighed and, scattering their manes to the wind, rose to the sky. Sosruko stands on a hill, looks at the sky, but doesn’t know how to get there.
Then a falcon flew to the herder, sat on his shoulder and asked:
- What is your sadness about, Sosruko?
- My herd galloped to the sky.
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you,” said the falcon and flew away.
Before Sosruko had time to raise and lower his eyelashes, the falcon drove the entire herd to the ground. In the morning, Sosruko drove the herd to the old woman. The old woman counted, counted the horses and said:
- The second night is your victory.
In the evening, Sosruko again drove the horses to pasture. He thinks: “Will something happen this midnight?” And that midnight the horses ran into the sea and disappeared into the abyss. Sosruko sat down in sadness on a coastal stone. A fish swam to the shore and asked:
-What is your sadness about?
— My herd disappeared into the sea.
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you,” said the fish. Before Sosruko had time to rise from the coastal stone, the fish drove the entire herd out of the sea. At dawn, Sos saw a hand: the herd had grown - a foal was standing on the shore and licking its lips, and its thin legs were trembling in the wind.
-Where did you come from, little foal? - Sosruko asked.
“My mother gave birth to me in the depths of the sea,” the foal answered with a thin neigh.
- Who is your mother?
— Mare Thozh.
Sosruko's soul rejoiced. “This is my happiness,” he thought.
When Sosruko drove the herd to the mound, the old woman began to count the horses. She counted them, then counted them again and said:
— One foal is an extra one. Where is he from?
— The mare Thozh foaled.
“And the third night is your victory,” the old woman praised the Nart. “I’ll give you a horse, choose anyone.” Well, which one do you like?
“I need this sea colt,” Sosruko said firmly.
“This little one?” the female herd was surprised. - Yes, he will never become a real horse!
“Listen, woman,” Sosruko said in excitement. - If you want to do me good, give me this foal. He was born on the third night of my labors, and I fell in love with him.
“Take it,” agreed the old woman.
Sosruko thanked the old herdswoman, said goodbye to her, mounted his horse and galloped off, holding the donated foal in the reins. At the first stop, the foal suddenly asked:
-Who are you?
- Sosruko.
- That's it, Sosruko. I can become a real horse friend for you, but know that I only managed to taste my mother’s milk three times. I am the second child of the mare Thozh: the firstborn was taken away by Emynezh. I will not yield to my elder brother in agility, speed, or strength, for he has only tasted mother’s milk three times. If you want me to be stronger than my older brother, let me go to my mother. I will taste her milk for the fourth time and become invincible. Then I'll come back to you.
Sosruko agreed and released the foal, telling him:
- Come back quickly. I will wait for you under this tree.
The foal ran to its mother, and Sosruko turned his horse to rest in the shade of a tree. Before he had time to take his foot out of the stirrup to dismount, the colt came running back.
- Why did you come back? Have you changed your mind about going to your mother? - Sosruko asked.
“I’ve already been to my mother, I’ve already tasted mother’s milk for the fourth time,” the foal answered with a thin neigh.
“How fast you are!” Sosruko was surprised.
- No, I haven’t shown my speed yet: I walked there at a walk, and returned back at a small trot.
“So I’m lucky,” Sos rejoiced with his hand. “I see you will make a real horse.”
“You’re wrong: I’m already a real horse.” Sit on me: I will test you, you are torturing me.
Sosruko took the saddle off his gray horse, saddled the foal, sat on it and galloped off, holding the gray one by the reins. As soon as we started, the gray one began to stumble. The foal walks at a walk, and the gray horse, in order to keep up, must gallop at a trot. The foal is trotting, and the gray one is running at full speed. They had not even passed three passes when the gray one fell, and the foal, not immediately noticing this, dragged him along the ground.
- Well, you are so zealous, my little one! - Sosruko admired. It was then that he gave the foal a nickname: “Thozhey,” which means: the little son of the mare Thozhey.
There was no horse on earth that could compare with Thozhey! The old gray horse was so strong and fast, but he could not withstand Thozhey’s uncontrollable galloping: the strength left him, and he lay down, lifeless, in the middle of the road. Sosruko was bitter, he wanted to mourn his old comrade, but he was afraid of offending Thozhey. He buried the gray one in a foreign land and rode on.
Having entered the possession of Emynezh, Sosruko again caused warm weather. Emynezh, who had been sitting in a fur coat by the fire all this time, rejoiced at the spring warmth, threw off his fur coat, mounted a three-legged horse and rushed to the top of the mountain, to the arable land, taking with him a leather bag with the seeds of the god of fertility.
Sosruko caught up with him at the foot of the mountain, grabbed a bag with the treasured millet and galloped to the fortress. There he called the Nart girl, put her in the saddle and rushed towards the Nart Country. Emynezh gave chase. The same one walked at a pace, and the three-legged black galloped at full speed, but the older brother could not catch up with the younger one. Emynezh flew into a rage and began to beat his horse with a heavy lead whip. The giant beat the black man sparing no effort, and the road was filled with the black man’s cries:
“Hey, horse, you and I were born from the same mother—I recognize you by your color, by your agility.” Do you see, do you hear how the rider beats me? Have pity on me, dear brother, stop!
But Tkhozhey did not stop, he continued to walk, and Emynezh lashed the unfortunate black man harder and harder with a lead whip. The three-legged horse screamed again:
- Dear brother, have pity on me, let me catch up with you! My rider will kill me!
Then Tkhozhey answered his brother:
- Should I, the youngest, teach you? Remember your mother’s instruction: if a stupid and evil rider hits you, throw him off and beat him to the ground with the blow of your hooves!
Voronoi listened to his younger brother, rushed under the very clouds and threw Emynezh off. The monster flew upside down and crashed into the abyss, and flames flew out from there: it was Emynezh’s dragon tail that hit the rock, and lightning flashed.
And the three-legged horse, sensing freedom, galloped into the intermarium to his mother Thozh.
Sosruko rode for a long time, holding a leather bag with millet seeds in front of him in the saddle. Finally arrived in the Country of the Narts. The first person Sosruko saw was the shepherd Kuitsuk. A shepherd was sitting on a stone at a fork in three roads, and his flock was grazing around him. Kuitsuk was not very handsome, but to the Nart girl, who had languished in captivity for a long time, far from her native land, everything seemed beautiful in the Nart Country. Kuitsuk also seemed wonderful to her. Sosruko noticed this. He said to the shepherd:
- May your herd multiply, Kuitsuk! I brought Thagoleja millet to the Nart Country, and my wife to you. Talk to her, otherwise she is in captivity, in a foreign land, and has lost the habit of talking with Nart horsemen.
The delighted girl jumped off her horse, and Kuitsuk sat her down next to him, on a stone, at a fork in three roads, and Sosruko rode to Khasa to give millet seeds to the Narts.
Wow, how Hasa rejoiced! They danced for seven days, the sledges drank for seven days, and their games continued for seven days. And when the festival ended, the sledges plowed the ground and sowed the blessed millet seeds.
The seeds ripened in the Nart soil and sprouted abundantly. The Nart land has never known such a harvest! The sledges cooked millet paste and carried it to Satan's house in a huge copper cauldron. The Narts showed honor to Sosruko: they gave him the great honor of being the first to taste the pasta made from the new harvest. It was the greatest honor in the Nart Country, the greatest joy, and Sosruko was happy, and Satanei was proud of him.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru